Most interviewed believe there should be restrictions put on aggressive celebrity photographers.
By Melonie Magruder / Special to The Malibu Times
A proposed city ordinance to restrict harassment by or even ban paparazzi from Malibu is a subject that can generate a great deal of discussion.
Most Malibu residents are familiar with the sight of commercial photographers camped outside restaurants and retail shops or on beaches, waiting to snag a shot of a celebrity in an unguarded or shirtless moment. And most are aware of the recent fracas on Little Dume Beach when a dozen or so paparazzi determined to photograph a surfing Matthew McConaughey were confronted by local surfers who felt they were protecting their turf. The resulting brouhaha was instantly broadcast around the world on the Internet.
So would Malibu residents support restrictions on paparazzi within their domain?
A canvas of men and women on the street yielded definitive opinions.
Nora Barlow and Jessica Levine are Malibu residents who work at the Legends boutique in Cross Creek and frequently see paparazzi squatting outside their door.
“It’s crazy,” Levine said. “It’s a huge invasion of people’s privacy. I’ve even seen little kids who skate around and pull out these huge cameras when anyone famous is around.”
“We should ban them completely,” Barlow added. “Pavilions has a sign up keeping them out, but they hang around in the parking lot. It would be fine with me if they couldn’t take photos for all those magazines.”
When asked if she herself reads the celebrity magazines, Barlow replied, “Well, sometimes. But I’d just read something else. Books.”
Natalia Luff was watching her children play in the sand box at Cross Creek and felt that the presence of paparazzi was frequently intrusive to all.
“They definitely need to up the security at playgrounds,” Luff said. “Celebrities should be able to bring their kids to enjoy the parks as well, without being annoyed by photographers.”
Cindy Oronoz, another mother at the playground, was more circumspect.
“It would be interesting to see how you could enforce a ban on paparazzi,” she said. “It’s hard to comment without details, but I don’t think it’s good if they don’t keep their distance. They overstep boundaries. Common sense should dictate any ordinance. But if the paparazzi were considerate and didn’t get into people’s faces, we wouldn’t need a ban.”
Ana Saavedra comes to Malibu from Valencia with her father to fish from the pier and said that she thinks Malibu should support a ban.
“No matter how famous you are, you deserve your privacy,” Saavedra said. “Anyway, I don’t read the trash magazines because I know they are all lies. Maybe they could restrict paparazzi to only one area and require that they get the star’s permission to photograph them.”
Dustin Mayo works for Malibu Pier Sports Fishing and has seen photographers training their telephoto lenses on shoreline homes.
“I would feel weird having them on coastal cruises if they had those cameras,” he said. “People here should be allowed their privacy.”
A bartender at the Malibu Inn, who declined to give his name, took a practical approach.
“It doesn’t really affect my life. But why ban them here and nowhere else?” he asked.
A lifeguard at Surfrider Beach, who did not wish to be identified and at first declined to give an opinion on the paparazzi, shook his head when asked about them.
“I do remember one day when Cameron Diaz was doing a photo shoot down here and her handlers asked if we would transport her across the sand in one of our vehicles to avoid the photographers,” the lifeguard said. “Would ordinances mean we are responsible for enforcement? We have enough to do watching the water.”
Donny Wilson is team captain for the Malibu Surfing Association and knows most of the people involved with the incidents at Little Dume.
“If the paparazzi had shown a little more etiquette, it wouldn’t have gone down the way it did,” Wilson said. “This has just gotten out of hand. Matt (McConaughey) just had a kid and is losing sleep. Can’t he relax? We come here to surf. They should absolutely close the beaches to any paparazzi from Paradise Cove north to Point Dume.”
Other local surfers had strong opinions about the paparazzi.
One large tattooed fellow who identified himself only as “Dog” fears that paparazzi frenzy will result in tragedy.
“We just want to live in peace, bro’,” he said. “But they are gonna cause an accident someday.”
“Dog’s” buddy, Jon “Hurricane” Cummings warned that Malibu locals will protect their own when it comes to future confrontation with photographers.
“People pay for a standard of living here,” Cummings said. “The paparazzi need to show respect or there will be anarchy.”
Jordan Barshay agreed. “The problem with the paparazzi at Little Dume is that they weren’t just taking pictures of celebrities. They were taking shots of local guys’ girlfriends. You’re asking for trouble when you do that.”
But not everyone thinks the celebrity photographers should be turned away.
John Garcia has a home on Malibu Road near one of the infamous “party” houses of last summer.
“There’s a down side to the paparazzi and a plus side,” Garcia said. “We have to remember that they keep Malibu on the map, which is good for our merchants and good for our home values.”
Does he ever have problems with paparazzi himself?
He answered, “Well, I accidentally almost ran over one awhile ago.”